when sh*t happens

“If you worried about falling off the bike, you’d never get on.”  (Lance Armstrong)

I bet if you thought about it, there’d be heaps of things you could think of that have happened to you or those you love, that have caused shock, grief and a total re-work of life’s expectations. 

Yesterday I had a really good conversation with my sister about “Plan B” – how we react when things don’t go according to plan.  When the blueprint of your life changes unexpectedly, and things you anticipated and expected to occur, don’t happen.  The loss of a job, a loved one, a relationship, health.  These events cause grief.  And it seems very few of us have the internal circuitry required to cope with such events.  Understandably, we don’t like dealing with disappointment because it’s so unpleasant and painful. 

However on the bright side (if there can be a bright side to these awful times), these are the events that shape your life and bring character and colour to who you are.  There’s something about experiencing struggle and pain that can bring out the best in people.   When we go through crap, we develop the internal software that can cause us to shine.

Lance Armstrong has come through the horrors of cancer against all odds.  Here’s some quotes from him:

Pain is temporary, quitting last forever.  

What is stronger, fear or hope?

 I wanted to live, but whether I would or not was a mystery, and in the midst of confronting that fact, even at that moment I was beginning to sense that to stare into the heart of such a fearful mystery wasn’t a bad thing.  To be afraid is a priceless education. 

Winning is about heart, not just legs.  It’s got to be in the right place.

If you’re going through a tough time now, I hope you have a friend who can support you.  And I hope Lance Armstrong can inspire you with his story of winning in the face of almost certain loss.